Displacing Katy Perry to #3 is Dizzee Rascal who scores his first #1 single on my chart this week. Next week, Coldplay could earn their fourth #1 - it would follow-up to "Clocks," "Speed Of Light," and "Fix You."

Friday, July 25, 2008

It may be hard to believe but David Banner has remained consistent throughout his albums since 2003. His 5th album Certified was brilliant, albums prior to that were on a decent level so it's a shame his latest effort The Greatest Story Ever Told hasn't turned out so "great" -The album does the unusual thing of digging itself too deep and forgetting to churn out some potential hits. Certified had the catchy pornographic urban contemporary hit ("Play") -The Greatest Story Ever Told has nothing. David takes himself too seriously this time around, we want the catchy hits not the "greatest story."

"So Long" is admittedly a pretty strong opener, it finds a vocally charged Banner touching on politics and race, it's accompanied by a pretty stomping beat. After the "G.S.E.T." interlude, the album moves into "Suicide Doors" which is my favorite song on here. Put whatever he's talking about to one side and you have the perfect combination of wonderful balladry, (being backed by a nice piano riff) and a nice mid-paced beat.

The star studded "9MM" features Snoop Dogg, Akon and Lil' Wayne, it's unfortunate the track as a whole is so moderate, not even the tamed best that is Snoop could make this track any less moderate, Akon does his part well and so does Lil' Wayne -but it's still pretty so and so. After the "T.I. speaks" interlude, the album then moves into its only close to contemporary track "Get Like Me" which also serves as its lead single, the song features Chris Brown and Young Joc, it's pretty tunelss and with Chris Brown on the track it's a shame it's not as good as it should be.

Popping up again is Lil' Wayne on "Shawty Say" which samples Lil' Wayne's Hot 100 #1 ("Lollipop") where he mentions: "shawty say the nigga that she wit' ain't shit", admittedly he makes the song more enjoyable. C'mon David. "A Girl" has a great beat to it, although not as good it's the ("Play") of the album, just a taste of how X-rated it is.

"Hold On" as well as "Cadillac on 22s Part 2" racks up as the more sentimental moments on the album, embarking on a more slower venture, they both use an acoustic guitar. "I Get By" is another one of my favorites, I like it because of the heavy R&B vibe it carries across. "B.A.N." is among the worst moments on the album, it uses a recurring drum-roll throughout the song, unfortunately his hip-hop and contemporarys drum roll, it doesn't mix that well.

"Ball With Me" is your typical hip-hop club track, it distinctively reminisces J-Kworns 2004 hit ("Tipsy"), the chorus is very cheesy, it features a group of women singing, whatever their singing. "Knock Out" sounds like a rip-off of Lil' Waynes "A Milli".

The rest of the songs on the album are nothing more than fillers. Well what a disappointment after Certified completely blew me away, It's a shame The Greatest Story Ever Told doesn't follow up well, infact it falls quite short.

Katy Perry manages to secure a second week at #1 - still holding off challenger Dizzee Rascal. New top 10 entries come from Ne-Yo, coming in at #10, I'm a tad late with this single, I only realized how much I liked it a while ago. Jordin Sparks scores her second top 10 with "No Air" following up to her debut single "Tattoo" which peaked at #5.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

After 2 major soundtracks and a minor self titled debut Hannah Montana OST and Hannah Montana 2: Meet Miley Cyrus - Miley Cyrus officially strips away from her cookie cut "Hannah" tunes and unleashes her debut album Breakout --I had no intention of enjoying the album as much as I am-- The album does the typical thing of, every time a disney star (preferably female) wants to strip away from their sweet image, they embark on a series of typical hard drums with electronic guitar numbers, notably Hilary Duff last album Identity and Aly & AJs Insomniatic. But despite this Miley did manage to pump out a fairly decent album.

The title track "Breakout" is a great opener, it's a rocky, heavily drum based power anthem, with the lyrics being about showing rebellion and having fun. Kinda like what you would've seen Britney Spears doing earlier this year. The lead single "7 Things" took a while before I could safely say, I like this, The song is a typical love you/hate you moment, the chorus finds Miley saying the 8 not 7 things she hates about her boyfriend --eventually ranting on the things she likes about him towards the end, in a nutshell, it's a good pop song. "The Driveway" is a nice ballad -nothing special though- it does have nice melody to it, especially during the chorus.

The cheesy remake of Cyndi Laupers "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" is pretty pointless --apart from the recurring electronic guitar it's pretty bland. Among my favorites on here is "Full Circle" which sounds oddly like something from American Idol winner Kelly Clarksons My December- It has a brilliant beat to it and an excellent melody throughout the chorus and the hook. Another favorite is "Fly On The Wall" it has a very eery, haunting element to it, yet another great pop song. The more slower song on the album "Bottom Of The Ocean" is a haunting ballad, but it sounds more filler than anything else. Another anthem type song "Wake Up America" the song is heavily backed by an electronic guitar, I can't find the will to like it, I think it's pretty boring, the electronic guitar doesn't give the impact it should.

One of the albums better ballads is "These Fall Walls" it's noticeably more stronger (both vocal and instrument wise) than "Bottom Of The Ocean" -one of my favorites, another good ballad is "Simple Song", the song begins with your typical piano-riff moment before breaking into a wonderful full forceful throttle production. Ballad after ballad then comes "Goodbye" the albums closing track, a beautiful guitar based number, with Miley showing off a... decent vocal performance.

You'd be wrong to underestimate Breakout the album does have some brilliant pop moments, their just not strong enough to define Miley as a serious pop act, so to speak she doesn't have her ("Baby One More Time") or ("Genie In A Bottle") but "7 Things" comes close.

After hitting it big with 2006s Motion in the Ocean McFly carry through their signature candy cotton taste in alternative pop music. Motion in the Ocean was a brilliant piece of work --Radio:Active fails to match up to its quality, it lacks the standouts like the melodic ("Star Girl") and the showtune-ish ("Little Joanna") from Motion in the Ocean --the album takes on a more rugged edge, which falls short when it comes to their creativity, but still has a handful of excellent tracks.

"Lies" is your typical electronic guitar and drum based track, it's a pleasing opener, I like the progressing guitar throughout the song, it gives the song a melodic effect. "One For The Radio" is the albums brilliant lead single, embarking on an aggressive chant anthem like venture, absolutely fantastic piece of pop. "Everybody Knows" is among the albums highlights, taking on a strong electronic guitar, churning out some electrifying moments throughout the course of the song, it's a true summer anthem.

My favorite song on here is "Do Ya" it's an amazing 60s summer jam, it's amazing pop song, which a dash of alternative. There are rumors that its set to be released as a christmas single. I don't see it as being much of a christmas single, but -hey. "Falling In Love" is more of a mellow number --it's a pretty decent ballad, but before the wonderful chorus kicks in it's pretty tuneless up until then. "POV" is another ballad, but among the better ones, it's a very dramatic number accompanied by a very strong vocal performance, it's a definite personal favorite. "Corrupted" is one of the more experimental tracks on here, it's one of the more rock-orientated, kicking of with a mid-pace vibe before breaking into the full throttle chorus.

"Smile" is a very cheery number --very uplifting with lyrics like: "you gotta stay happy... put away that frown", very cute, I could see myself listening to this when I'm having one of those days. "The End" has a very beautiful chorus --the verses and the hook are pretty tuneless and weak. "Going Through The Motions" is a 60s throwback joint -back by a raging guitar, very cool. "Down Goes Another One" is another dramatic ballad, although "POV" is its superior, they really make a good job of using the electronic guitars.

"Only The Strong Survive" is a cute soft rock track, although it does seem a tad filler --they already do this with "Smile". Closing the album is "The Last Song" Ironically, it's a beautiful 100 percent piano ballad, basing on a excellent melody.

Radio:Active fell just a tad short below my expectations, but I did enjoy the album nevertheless. I do miss the catchy hooks and chorus of the songs in Motion in the Ocean and Wonderland. I think Radio:Active strays a bit too far from the casual pop their use to. Bottom line-- it's a decent album with a handful of excellent tracks (like "Do Ya" and "Everybody Knows").

Saturday, July 19, 2008

Katy Perrys "I Kissed A Girl" still lies atop the Hot 100. Rihannas "Take A Bow" makes a minor comeback this week, rising back into the top 3 after hitting #1 2 months ago. How are people not over this yet?

11. Lil' Wayne - A Milli

"A Milli" continues its upward rise, as it continues to dominate top 40 radio and non-surprisingly rhythmic radio stations. Another top 10 looks very promising.

17. Kardinal Official featuring Akon - Dangerous

Hot 100 newcomer Kardinal Official scores his first top 20 with "Dangerous" featuring Akon, who also scores his 5th top 20 this week following the more recent ("Sorry, Blame It On Me"). I'm absolutely in love with this song at the moment, very catchy chorus.

Katy Perry earns her first #1 single on my chart, displacing Britney to #4, but with Dizzee Rascal right behind her, her reign won't be that long. Entering the top 10 this week is Madonna's "Give It 2 Me" her second single from her latest album Hard Candy.

Monday, July 14, 2008

After 2 albums as Hannah Montana --Miley Cyrus who plays the character releases her debut album (in her name) tomorrow in the U.S. -The album titled Breakout is set to top the Billboard 200 album chart with sales over 390,000. Listening to the iTunes samples, I'm persuaded purchase my first album from the singer, the stuff on the album draw strong similarities to Lindsay Lohans debut Speak released back in 2004, admittedly that was a terrible album with only one good track ("Rumors") --I'm confident Breakout will fare better.

Sunday, July 13, 2008

When the thundering bassline of, "Gimme More" begins to render you know exactly where this is going. Britney Spears' fifth album, Blackout is indeed an interesting offering from the singer, emerging as a more electronic and vocodered sense of pop, in comparison to her last album (which was almost 4 years ago) In the Zone, which was a very diverse effort --incorporating elements of classic pop ("Toxic") hip-hop with some poppy flair ("Boom Boom") some club-ready trance moments ("Breathe On Me," and "Touch of My Hand") and some rare, haunting ballad moments ("Shadow," and "Everytime").

Blackout doesn't jump genres much, well at all. It sticks to its futuristic, electronic formula and lives it out throughout the whole album. The lead single, "Gimme More" kicks off the album well, pacing with a throbbing bassline and kinetic crashes --Producer, Danja also adds in his vocals towards the end, seems a tad cheesy but Blackout does essentially find itself more in the hands of the producer than Spears. Following up swiftly is the other single, "Piece of Me" which was one of the first tracks I really liked off the album. Dubbing Spears' vocals in (sometimes inaudible) vocoders, it looses all personality and range, bringing in a more robotic venture, pulsing with articulate synthesized basslines and layered robotic vocals.

Being a Britney fan myself -- I'm really appreciating this harsh stray away from her usual style of music. This is definitely her most adventurous yet. "Radar," begins with twingy layers of synth before breaking into an animated, kinetic handclap bassline. The current single, "Break the Ice" isn't as electronic as most of the stuff on here --it has a clean-cut bassline and some surprising natural vocal work from Spears. The song also has a nice hook that builds up to the killer chorus.

Whilst I really like the album, there are some songs that I don't really care for. The Danja produced, "Get Naked" is a very missable track. Once again includes some very haunting vocals from Danja, infact he basically is the chorus, leaving Spears' to murmur the verses and annoyingly repeat the title. "Perfect Lover," isn't any better --although I like the eery vibe, it's pretty wasteful and Spears' purring over the backing track isn't as effective as its been on previous showings, and with lyrics like: "don't you wanna see my body naked," it's not that sexy.

Luckily those two are the only ones I don't really like. The best track on the album comes in the form of, "Heaven on Earth" which pulses with synthesizers and subsequently emerges into a blissful 80s reminiscent production --carrying a very lighthearted feel. I absolutely love it. "Freakshow," is a messy and shallow number, but is also is annoyingly addictive --plundering with a collection of kinetic handclaps and clicks, bold synths and bleeps.

"Toy Soldier," is a upbeat, retro number. Like most of the songs on here --there's really not much need for much of a vocal perfomance, Spears' forceful rap seems to do the job and do it well. "Hot As Ice," is just a good --I love the lyric: "living legend you can look but don't touch."

"Ooh Ooh Baby," (along with "Break the Ice,") is probably the least electronic on the album. Starting out as a somewhat Spanish acoustic before breaking into a more compelling venture, which consist of tambourines and acquiring a rhythmic thump. The album closes with the only slow song on here, the Pharell Williams produced, "Why Should I Be Sad?" which thumps a slick urban feel. With Blackout's initial release, this song didn't receive such a positive reception, probably because it puts the albums electronic spree to a harsh hault.

I didn't give this album a chance last year. I thought because of all the outragrous antics Spears' was seeing to there was no way this could be anything pass decent, but I was wrong. Blackout is was passed decent --not better than In the Zone-- but not that far off.

Basshunter scores his first top 3 with "Now Your Gone" which currently blowing dance orientated msuic channels at the moment, a #1 for this song looks very promising.

3. Jordin Sparks featuring Chris Brown - No Air

"No Air" ascends into the top 3 -which is Jordan Sparks first and Chris Browns third following ("Forever") which peaked at #1 earlier this year and his debut single ("Run It!") which peaked at #2 back in 2005.

6. Kid Rock - All Summer Long

With the help of some major airplay Kid Rock flies into the top 10 from #46 with "All Summer Long" scoring his first UK top 10, prior to this his highest charting single on the UK chart was ("American Bad Ass") which stalled outside the top 20 (peaking at #25) back in 2000. Strangely Kid Rock has only had 4 appearances on the UK singles chart since he debuted back in 1990s. ("Bawitdaba") and peaked at #41 back 1999 and ("Cowboy") scored Kid Rock his first top 20 in the same year peaking at #35.

18. Nickelback - Photograph

Nickebacks "Photography" I've been seeing allot on the radio lately so its rise is understandable, the song rises from 29-18, scoring the band their 4th top 20, the previous three was the worldwide smash ("How You Remind Me"), which peaked at #4 ("Too Bad") which just managed to crack the top 10, peaking at #9 and ("Someday") which stalled outside the top 5, peaking at #6.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Spending her second week at the top spot is Katy Perrys "I Kissed A Girl" which is also this weeks airplay gainer.

5. Jonas Brothers - Burnin' Up

Jonas Brothers score their first top 10 this week with their latest commercial single "Burnin' Up" the single is their highest charting since ("SOS") peaked at #17 last year.

11. Rihanna - Disturbia

Rihannas "Disturbia" takes a massive stride up to #11 this week-- this song being her next #1 looks very very likely.

14. Lil' Wayne - A Milli

Lil' Wayne scored his first Hot 100 #1 with ("Lollipop") a couple weeks ago and now he releases "A Milli" the mid-paced rap track also the second release from Tha Carter III which became the fastest selling album of the year... well until someone else sells 1.1 million copies in their first week of release before the year ends. This is the first time Lil' Wayne has had 2 solo singles inside the top 20 at the same time, additionally this is his 3rd top 20 following ("Lollipop") and ("Go DJ") which became his first peaking at #14 back in 2004.

British pop group McFly are just days away from releasing their fourth studio album titled Radio:Active --their doing the weird thing of making this album free with the UK newspaper Mail On Sunday. From what I've heard, the album looks like another winner --their previous albums Motion in the Ocean and Wonderland were amazing, combining well crafted pop with a slight dash of alternative, lets hope Radio:Active will follow up well.

Britney tops my chart for a third week, holding off hot competition from Katy Perry - Perry might have a chance at #1 next week, but with Dizzee Rascal rapidly nipping at her feet, her reign shouldn't last very long. Swedish singer, Basshunter scores his second top 10 with "All I Ever Wanted" following up to "Now Your Gone" which has a 1 week stint at #1 in 2007.

Sunday, July 06, 2008

The last time Mariah Carey was in the spotlight, it was because her comeback album, The Emancipation of Mimi which saw Carey, a well deserved return to prominence — scoring her the biggest hit of her career, "We Belong Together" which earned the singer 2 Grammy nominations (Record of the Year and Song of the Year) and 2 wins (Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance). Mimi was a really refreshing album from Carey, finding the right balance between old school, modern and contemporary R&B, with a dash of pop and balladry — essentially making the perfect comeback album. But how does E=MC² follow up?

E=MC² is basically a carbon copy of Mimi — using the same winning formula as before, not really exploring any new boundaries, but why fix something that's not broken? Using the whole starting in the club ("It's Like That") and ending in church ("Fly Like a Bird") blueprint. The albums kicks off with, "Migrate" featuring T-Pain. A gritty, hip-hop styled track, with gushes of light R&B to keep it contemporary. It's a very strong opening, I do prefer this to "It's Like That." Following up swiftly is the naughty lead single we all know and love, "Touch My Body" becoming Carey's 18th chart topper, I would say it's pretty faultless — a little lighthearted provocative behavior never hurt anybody.

Getting more into the depths of the album. "Cruise Control," with Damien Marley, is a breezy mid-tempo, with a dash of Caribbean flavor — not something I remember Carey doing before. Her Jamaican accent is pretty humerus too. "Side Effects," with Young Jeezy, is a dark R&B number, backed softly with an 808 machine with some haunting bleeps running through. Carey discusses experience with Ex-Husband, Tommy Mottola. Another song that ventures in a moody R&B territory is, "Thanx 4 Nothin," which is a another favorite. It begins with a crashing bassline, before moving into an acoustic sound, which plays out throughout the song.

Just like, Mimi — has its fair share of ballads, probably more."I Stay In Love," is the first that pops up, sounding like a duplicate of ("We Belong Together," and give-or-take, "Don't Forget About Us") backed beautifully by a piano and pretty strong vocal delivery. I also noticed it sounds like "Never Letchu Go," from Janet Jackson's latest album, Discipline."Love Story," which features vocals from Jermaine Dupri, is another ballad, but with a more cutting edge bassline and a more interesting story line, making it a standout — again Carey sound immaculate on here."Last Kiss," is your typically love-dovey ballad, although it sounds good, it's not really anything special. The last 2 ballads are: the weepy, "Bye Bye" which finds Carey reminiscing on her lost and loves ones. I hear it's the second single and lastly, "I Wish You Well" which is essentially a better version of, Mimis, "Fly Like a Bird" using the typical but effective vocal and piano technique.

"I'm That Chick," is a smooth mid-tempo 80s influenced disco number, not really one of my favorites, but it's a good song. "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time," is a great summery track — backed with a catchy yet enchanting melody. As I expected, the album does have its flaws, "O.O.C." is a breezy but lazy number, it doesn't completely suck it has a nice tambourine and handclap beat to it but that's when the excitement ends. The repetition of ("It's forever") seems like a way to get out of writing more lyrics, (Kinda like "Bliss," from the, Rainbow album which found Carey singing high-pitched "aahs" in replace of any lyrics in the chorus) and the sudden change into the French and Spanish language adopts the same reason.

"For the Record," Carey described as a treat for the fans, as she makes reference to her past songs (notably, "Underneath the Stars" and "My All," in the bridge) It's a mellow, almost enchanting track, but it just doesn't stick and fades into the bulk of the album.

E=MC² nicely follows to, The Emancipation of Mimi not bringing in anything new or taking anything away, yet not remaining exactly the same. Whilst I prefer, Mimi - E=MC² did its job: to present a decent combination of contemporary pop and R&B to show Carey's still relevant and to throw in a handful of ballads to show she still has that powerful vocal everyone fell in love back at the start 0f the 90s.

Saturday, July 05, 2008

After 7 weeks on the chart Katy Perrys "I Kissed A Girl" ascends to the top spot scoring her first #1. This is the 1000th #1 of the rock-era. This is one of the few songs this year that took a while to grow on me, I've learned to love its torchery electronic sound. Additionally "I Kissed A Girl" also tops the Pop 100, which measures single sales, digital sales and mainstream airplay.

3. Leona Lewis - Bleeding Love

5. Natasha Bedingfield - Pocketful of Sunshine

After legendary topping the chart a couple weeks back, british sensation Leona Lewis debut single "Bleeding Love" begins to rise up the chart once again after falling out of the top 3 last week. After a staggering 19 weeks on the chart Natasha Bedingfields "Pocketful of Sunshine" ascends into the top 5, scoring her second top 5 after ("Unwritted") peaked at #5 back in 2004.

8. Plies featuring Ne-Yo - Bust It Baby Part II

I'm absolutely in love with this song right now. This week is finally cracks the top 10 --earning Plies his second top 10 after ("Shawty") with T-Pain peaked at #9 last year.

10. Miley Cyrus - 7 Things

Miley Cyrus "7 Things" jumps a staggering 60 spots up the chart this week, earning this weeks 'greatest gainer' award. The rise is thanks to single release through iTunes last week. "7 Things" scored Miley her second top 10 after ("See You Again") peaked in the same position. The song is currently holding strong at top 40 radio, so it untimely keep rising.

18. Rihanna - Disturbia

Rihanna scores her 11th top 40 this week with "Disturbia" which makes a clean debut at #18 this week. The previous single ("Take A Bow") earned yet another Hot 100 #1 for Rihanna, but will "Disturbia" follow in its footsteps? I think so.

For over 7 years Janet hasn't toured, the last time janet toured was back in 2002, for her album All for You. Janet has set up a chat line at SayNow for her fans to call her to give her some songs we would want her to perform at her upcoming tour tentivley titled, The Rock Witchu Tour, titled after the single "Rock With U" from her latest album Discipline.

UK grime act, Dizzee Rascal scores his first UK #1 with, "Dance Wiv Me". This is is first solo top 10 since 2004's, ("Stand Up Tall") peaked at #10. His only other #1 was ("Do They Know It's Christmas?") as a part of Band Aid 20. "Dance Wiv Me", is also his 5th chart topper on the UK Indie Chart, following ("Jus' a Rascal") from his debut album, Boy In The Corner, ("Stand Up Tall") from his sophomore album, Showtime and ("Pussyole" and "Flex") from his latest album, Maths + English. Additionally "Dance Wiv Me", also marks Calvin Harris's 3rd top 10, following last years hits ("The Girls" and "Acceptable In The 80's").

3. Basshuner - All I've Ever Wanted

Basshunter scores his second consecutive top 3 peak(debut) after his previous single, ("Now Your Gone"), peaked at #1. "All I've Ever Wanted", the second release from his fourth commercial album, Now Your Gone - The Album, picked up heavy airplay last week, propelling it to its top 5 debut.

6. Ironik - Stay With Me

Definitely something I didn't expect to see in the top 10, two grime acts. "Stay With Me", is second single released from Ironik's debut album, No Point In Wasting Tears which peaked at #21 on the UK Album Chart. The previous single, ("So Nice") failed to connect with the UK public failing to crack the top 200 on the singles chart.

18. Madonna - Give It 2 Me

Madonna's, "Give It 2 Me", ascends into the top 20, giving her, her 67th top 40 hit. "Give It 2 Me", is the second single released from her latest album, Hard Candy I'm not too fond of the song at the moment, it sounds like typical glassy-pop, it's probably a grower.

I'll start with the top 10 this week and maybe post the full top 40 in later issues. (TW=This Week) (LW=Last Week). Bolded numbers signify songs that are mainly climbing the chart. Songs that have reached number one will have how many weeks they've stayed there in brackets beside it.

This week, Britney Spears spends a second at the top spot with, "Break The Ice" the third single from her latest album Blackout, which I'm still enjoying extensively. Katy Perry's "I Kissed A Girl" is a hot contender for #1 next week, as it nips up a couple more notches. New top 10 entries come from Dizzee Rascal's latest single, "Dance Wiv Me" (which is currently #1 on the UK singles chart) Coldplay's "Viva La Vida," Mariah Carey's "Bye Bye," and Rihanna's, "Disturbia."

Janet Jackson has always been an iconic figure in the world of pop ever since her breakthrough album, Control in 1986, spawning 5 top 5 hits on the U.S. singles chart --additionally scoring her first #1 ("When I Think Of You"). Her follow-up kicked it up a notch, 1989s politically fueled, Rhythm Nation 1814 is probably the biggest milestone in Jackson's career, securing a whopping 7 top 5 singles in the U.S. Including 4 #1s ("Miss You Much," "Escapade," "Black Cat" and "Love Will Never Do") Just weighing out her brother, Michael who scored 6 top 5s with his masterpiece, Thriller 7 years before.

The 90s introduced a more sexier Janet, all displayed on her fifth self-titled album, janet. adopting a more fresh jaunty R&B venture, which was the result of the hit single, "That's The Way Love Goes." After 4 year break Jackson returned in 1997 with the deeply introspective, The Velvet Rope which displayed Jackson's more darker self --dealing with sensitive topics such as depression and spousal abuse, but in the mists of all the darkness the album did manage to spawn the upbeat dance hit, "Together Again," which became her first #1 in years. 2001s All for You saw a more lighthearted Jackson, combining contemporary pop, edgy rock and smooth R&B.

Admittedly, Jackson some-what lost her touch on her last 2 offerings. Damita Jo was released while all the controversy surrounding Jackson's Superbowl performance with Justin Timberlake was still brewing, and the album failed to bring in any substantial sales or spawn in notable hits. The album wasn't bad, but was a massive decline in quality when compared to her previous efforts. 20 Y.O. saw poorer sales and again, lack of hits --although "Call On Me," with Nelly did become an R&B hit-- and also a continuing decline in quality.

Now we have, Discipline a possible return to form? Not really. After the futuristic introduction which finds Jackson interacting with what I believe is a talking computer named, Kyoko, the album kicks of with, "Feedback" Jackson's biggest hit in almost 7 years --peaking at #19 in the U.S., her highest peak single 2001s "Someone to Call My Lover," reached #3. "Feedback," is dancey pop song with an infectious hook, pulsing with synth and kinetic handclaps, this alone is better than the whole of 20 Y.O. put together. Next up is, "Luv" which supports a more R&B venture --Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins sure knows his stuff, I absolutely love this. The song has a very nice melody, especially during the round-off the chorus, but does suffer from Jackson's almost inaudible vocals. Sometimes the production of the song overshadows what should be the real attraction of the song, the voice.

After one of her infamous (and pointless) interludes is the Jurassic, "Rollercoaster," which is one of the more interesting numbers on here. Whilst it's not bad, it does lack a good melody or catchy hook. Among the best cuts on here is the summery, electro-pop fueled, "Rock With U," which finds Jackson mellowing out behind gushes of synth and a collection of blips and bleeps. The chorus is essentially made up of repeating's of: "ooh ooh ooh," which should be seen as a lazy attempt to bulk up the chorus but in fact does work really well on here.

The album kicks it up a notch on, "2 Nite" a fresh electronic-dance number, supported by Jackson's subtle vocal work --I do love the contrast. It has a killer chorus, obviously drawing some notable 80s influences, definitely one of my favorites on here. The next track, "Can't B Good," is mellow urban-number, supported mainly by an angelic harp only it's very boring, probably the least interesting track on here.

"Never Letchu Go," and "Greatest Ex," are the ballads of the album, both of the same piano and bass nature. Whilst their nice listens, Jackson has made better ballads ("Truth," "Every Time" and "Again") just to name a few. I do love the electronic guitar towards the end of "Never Letchu Go," making a pretty bland ballad more interesting.

Discipline, really deteriorates from the halfway point. "So Much Better," samples Daft Punk's, "Daftendirekt"and it's actually pretty awful, don't like it all. There's not much to it at all, a random squeaky voice singing the same thing over and over again. "The 1," with Missy Elliot should've been really good, but it sounds like a cheap rip-off Amerie's "One Thing." "What's Ur Name," is a bland and glassy R&B number --sounds like a left over from Damita Jo.

The lowest point of the album arrives on the title track, "Discipline" which finds a horny Jackson murmuring sexual innuendos with layered vocals against a very sultry and haunting backing track. While this has worked for Jackson on previous albums ("All for You's "Would You Mind," Damita Jo's "Warmth," Velvet Rope's "Rope Burn," janet's "Body That Loves You") it just doesn't cut here --I think it's pretty tacky and verging on disgusting now --now I am a fan of sexually pumped songs-- but this just a bit too forced and underwhelming.

The album closes with, "Curtains" a soothing slow jam where Jackson incorporates performance-puns for her funtime in the bedroom. Although the stuff on the second half of the album is pretty underwhelming, I really like this. Jackson's subtle vocal and harmonic murmurs really work on here.

Discipline suffers from the classic first-have-good and second-half-bad case, something that most pop and R&B albums can't seem to fight off, really only a few albums of the genre have managed to avoid this. Whilst I wasn't expecting anything brilliant from this offering, after 20 Y.O. I was hoping for something a bit better than this --luckily it's not a complete disaster, as it does have a handful of good tracks. I just hope Janet finds her mojo on her next album.

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Vanessa Hudgens - Indentified. High School Music star, Vanessa hudges, releases her sophomore album, Indentified. Her debut album, V, was surprsingly quite good, it spawned the moderate hit "Say Ok" which I liked a lot. Lead single "Sneakernight" is out, not really amounting to much at the moment.

G-Unit - T.O.S. (Termination on Sight). Rap supergroup, G-Unit (featuring 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks and Tony Yayo) release their second, T.O.S. (Termination on Sight). The raunchy lead single "I Like the Way She Do It" has been out since April and since then the album has already spawned another single "Rider, Pt. 2."

July 11

Nas - Unitied. On his last album, Nas proclaimed Hip-Hop was dead. This time it would be wrong to assume to rapstar has returned with something more subtle. His ninth album, which is going to be commercially without a title, was initally suppose to be titled, Nigger, but was later pulled. Its lead single "Hero" hasn't been much of a hit for the rapper.

Other releases:

July 20

McFly - Radio:Active. Follow up to 2006s brilliant, Motion in the Ocean.

July 22

Miley Cyrus - Breakout. Miley Cyrus, who plays Disney star, Hannah Montana releases her first album as her self. I really liek the lead single "7 Things" hopefully, it will be good.

Welcome to my first blog. The blog will be devoted to most U.S. music and some UK music here and there, a weekly personal chart which will based on my musings. A chart analysis on the main U.S. and UK charts and there will also be album and single reviews and lastly, comments are always welcome.

About me

I began listening to music seriously 2005 and I've had a critical approach to it ever since. I give every genre a chance, but what captures my heart normally falls under R&B, pop and alternative rock... and anything Mariah Carey does.